What No Easy Day Reveals About Navy SEAL Gear

No Easy Day, the controversial first-hand account of the Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden, doesn't just provide a minute-by-minute description of the famous May 2011 operation. The book by SEAL Team Six member Matt Bissonnette (who wrote under the pseudonym Mark Owen before his true identity was revealed) also gives a wealth of fascinating information about what the Navy's elite commandos carry along on a mission.

Bissonnette is clearly careful not to reveal details about classified technology that SEAL Team Six (also called DEVGRU) used. For example, the stealth helicopters used to transport the SEALS are referred to in the book simply as Black Hawks, with no mention of their special capabilities. But he does detail the type of gear he would typically bring with him, including on the historic raid.

"Without doubt, DEVGRU had the best tools in the business," he writes. While total gear would often weigh 60 pounds, the SEAL motto was "light is right," and team members would try to strip down to just the essentials.

Here's what Bissonnette often had with him:

Knives and tools: Bissonnette says that a Gerber multitool, which includes a knife blade, screwdriver, scissors, and can opener, was provided to each member of Seal Team Six. So was a fixed-blade knife.

Weapons: According to the book, SEALs like Bissonnette get a "standard issue" Sig Sauer P226 (he also had an HK 45C), though he says the weapon he used on a daily basis was the HK 416 with a ten inch barrel and suppressor. Owens went on some missions with a MP7 submachine gun, but says it wasn't as powerful as the HK 416. His other guns included another HK 416, this one with a fourteen-inch barrel, which he preferred for long-range shots. SEALS also carry what they call the "pirate gun": The Vietnam-era M79 grenade launcher, nicknamed for its odd resemblance to a blunderbuss.

Breaching gear: SEAL Team 6 members like Own would typically carry explosive breaching charges, bolt cutters, and even a sledge hammer, used for gaining entry through locked doors and gates.

Combat Assault Dog, or CAD: Cairo, the Belgian Malinois who went on the Osama bin Laden mission, brought national fame to the SEAL Team Six's use of assault dogs. The "hair missiles," as one of Bissonnette's colleagues describe the dogs, can detect bombs and track and attack people. Owen credits the CAD with saving his life on one mission in Afghanistan whenthe dog found an insurgent hiding in a ditch, ready to attack, after his team thought it had cleared the area around them.

Night-vision goggles: Bissonnette mentions the top-of-the-line night-vision equipment issued to SEAL Team Six. Members carry four-tube night vision goggles rather than the standard two-tube ones, which have a larger field of view. They cost about $65,000 per pair, the author says.

Uniform and body armor: On the Abbottabad raid, Bissonnette says he wore a Crye Precision Desert Digital Combat Uniform. "Designed like a long-sleeved shirt and cargo pants, the uniform had ten pockets, each with a specific purpose," he writes. The uniform wicks away sweat, but Bissonnette also made his own modification by cutting off the sleeves. (For some servicemen this would be a major no-no, but SEAL Team Six members aren't required to wear standard-issue combat clothing). Members also get a vest with room for ballistic plates, though Bissonnette mentions leaving the plates behind on one mission to save weight. As for shoes, Owen opted for Salomon Quest boots to protect his ankles.

Sensitive Site Exploitation Kit: With SEALs increasingly called upon to help do detective work by collecting evidence, Owen traveled with rubber gloves, a digital camera, and a DNA collection kit. SEAL Team Tix took DNA swabs from Osama bin Laden at the compound in Abbottabad, in case the body couldn't be recovered.

Ambien: Long flights on C-17 transport aircraft often mean popping the popular sleeping pill. Bissonnette writes about taking Ambien to sleep several times in the book, and in particular on the final night before the Osama bin Laden raid.

Miscellaneous gear: Among the other gear Bissonnette talks about using are "bone phones," which are essentially communication devices that allow the user to hear through bone conduction technology. He also carried infrared chemical lights to mark specific spots, an extendable ladder, a Princeton Tech charge light, a Daniel Winkler fixed blade knife, assault gloves, leather mitts, batteries, energy gel, and two power bars. On the Osama bin Laden raid, he carried one more thing: $200, in case everything went wrong.

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